Stocks end volatile session mixed

NEW YORK -- Wall Street struggled to at least a temporary bottom to its slide Friday, closing mixed as investors overcame some of their dejection over interest rates.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 2.13 at 10,012.87. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was down 0.74 at 1,095.70, and the Nasdaq composite index lost 21.78 to 1,904.25.

Broader stock indicators were lower. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was down 0.74, or 0.1 percent, at 1,095.70, and the Nasdaq composite index lost 21.78, or 1.1 percent, to 1,904.25.

For the week, the Dow lost 104.47, or 1 percent, the Nasdaq slipped 13.71, or 0.7 percent, and the S&P 500 fell 3.00, or 0.3 percent. It was the third straight week of losses for all three major indexes.

While the Labor Department's Consumer Price Index rose 0.2 percent, less than economists had expected, the "core" CPI -- excluding food and fuel costs -- rose 0.3 percent, which was higher than forecast. While the figures were down slightly from March, the core CPI figure showed that inflation, which had been long dormant, was gaining strength.

Businesses continue to thrive, according to Friday's data from the Commerce Department. Business sales were up 2.9 percent in March, while business inventories climbed 0.7 percent the same month. However, the sales figure could be due to companies raising prices, triggering inflation, rather than increased demand.

Consumers don't seem to share in that bullish outlook. The University of Michigan's subscription-only consumer sentiment index remained steady at 94.2 in May. Analysts had been expecting a rating of 96.

Investor sentiment for technology bellwether Dell Inc. waned in the wake of its latest earnings. While the computer manufacturer matched Wall Street estimates with a 22 percent increase in first quarter profits, the company's inventory and second quarter outlook were worse than expected. Dell dropped $1.08 to $34.72.

Cisco Systems Inc. lost 52 cents to $21.24 after its board authorized an additional $5 billion for the company's stock buyback program.

Defense contractor Raytheon Co. was up 43 cents at $33.12 after it announced it will pay $410 million to settle a lawsuit in which shareholders claimed the company misled investors about its financial troubles.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by about 5 to 4 on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 1.68 billion shares, compared with 1.79 billion on Thursday.

The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies was down 3.41, or 0.6 percent, at 543.76.

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street showed some resilience Friday, closing mixed even as oil prices settled at a new high and raised more concerns about inflation. The Nasdaq composite index fell to a four-month low on weakness in semiconductor stocks, and all three ... [Read More...]

NEW YORK -- Wall Street got a badly needed break from oil price worries Friday, with stocks rising modestly as Saudi Arabia indicated that OPEC should increase its daily output. However, the Dow Jones industrial average finished the week under the 10,000 mark for ... [Read More...]